The Florida Panthers couldn't maintain their home-ice advantage, falling 5-1 to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 3 of their first-round series. Despite returning key players like Aaron Ekblad and Aleksander Barkov, the Panthers were unable to capitalize on their early lead. Tampa Bay's offense, led by Jake Guentzel's two-point performance, outmatched Florida's defense. The Panthers' ability to generate offense was stifled by Tampa's improved defensive play around goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy, who made 33 saves. Florida's missed assignments proved costly, allowing Tampa Bay to capitalize and take the series lead.